


Episode IX: The Balance of The Force

by Youmightdietrying



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-25
Updated: 2018-04-01
Packaged: 2019-04-07 21:33:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14090115
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Youmightdietrying/pseuds/Youmightdietrying
Summary: The Resistance is badly broken, hidden to try and salvage any hope of stopping the First Order. A vision through the Force sets Rey and Poe on a new path, while Kylo Ren, humiliated and furious after the confrontation with his old Master, is determined to brutally assert his authority over the galaxy. The Knights of Ren emerge and the Jedi rise to meet them.





	1. Chapter 1

         Poe couldn’t remember the last time that he had slept. The past few days had been a whirlwind of fighting and running, and sleep had been the least of his worries. Now he felt it, the exhaustion. It wasn’t just the lack of sleep, though. It was the guilt from his decisions on the Raddus. He had led a damn mutiny! All because his pride had gotten the best of him. He thought he may be better off in a starfighter than trying his hand at leadership again anytime soon.  
He looked around the Falcon at what remained of the Resistance. The few handfuls of soldiers were littered around the interior of the ship. Many had simply found an empty spot on the ground to sit, trying to find their own bit of rest. General Organa was nowhere to be seen, but Poe assumed that she was in the cockpit with Chewie, plotting their next move. If it had been a day earlier, he would have been in there with them, making his opinion known. Now though, he would leave it to the General.  
         Glancing behind him, he saw Rey huddled on the lounge seat behind the holo board. She had her knees pulled to her chest, her arms hugged around them. Just hours earlier, he had seen her lift hundreds of boulders with just her mind, but now she looked lost, vulnerable. He walked over and slowly lowered himself into the seat beside her. She looked over at him briefly, but then her focus went back to the nothingness in front of her. Never one for long silences, Poe couldn’t help but speak.  
         “Are you alright?”  
         Rey turned her head towards him again and shrugged. “I don’t know,” she said, frankly. “I spent my whole life on Jakku, wondering who I was, and now that I have some idea, I feel even more lost than ever.”  
         “So who are you?” Poe asked.  
         “As it turns out, I’m no one,” Rey laughed, though it was clear she found nothing funny about it. “I always had this vision of my parents as being these great, brave people, who loved me, but were forced to leave me behind for some noble mission. Truth is, they were no one too, and didn’t care about me at all. I wasted so many years waiting for them to come back.”  
         “You aren’t no one, Rey,” Poe protested. “You’re a Jedi, a protector of the Republic. Who cares what your parents were, it’s you who matters now, what you make of yourself. Look at Finn. The guy was raised to be a stormtrooper, but that wasn’t who he was, what he was meant to be.”  
         “I’m not sure how much difference I can make,” Rey lamented. “I’m a Jedi with no training, no teacher, and no lightsaber. Luke was our last hope, and now he’s gone.”  
         “My parents fought with Luke, Han and Leia as part of the Alliance to Restore the Republic,” Poe recalled proudly. “I grew up with so many stories about them, and about Luke facing down Darth Vader and the Emperor on the Death Star. Those stories made me want to fight for those who couldn’t, want to be the best pilot I could be. You can be that for some other kid out there in the galaxy who’s lost. Sometimes all we need is a little hope. I don’t think Luke showed up on Crait so that we would wallow in defeat and give up. I think he had faith in us…faith in you.”  
         Rey offered him a small grin. “Thanks, Poe. I wish I had as much faith in myself as you.”  
         “Ah, the Force is with you. You just have to trust it,” Poe intoned in his best professorial imitation.  
         “Do you know where we’re going?” Rey questioned, her guarded facade now softened somewhat.  
         “No idea,” Poe confessed. “I’ve hit my quota of doing stupid things in the past day, so I’m staying out of the way for the moment.”  
         “Oh, what did you do?”  
         Poe shrugged. “Organized a mutiny against my commanding officer, while at the same time sending Finn on a crazy secret mission doomed for failure to sneak aboard Snoke’s ship. No big deal.”  
         Rey looked at him with her mouth agape for a moment before she regained her senses. “Well, yes, that does sound sort of crazy.”  
         “Thanks for the pep talk,” Poe huffed.  
         “If it makes you feel any better, I abandoned Luke Skywalker and allowed myself to be captured by the First Order so that I could try to bring Kylo Ren back from the dark side. Didn’t quite work out the way I had hoped.”  
         “Well, if it’s any consolation, Snoke is dead,” Poe offered.  
         “Somehow, I think I’ve unleashed something far worse,” Rey frowned.  
         “Ren is kind of a dick,” Poe chuckled. He smiled wider when he noticed that he managed to get her to crack a grin. Before they had a chance to continue talking, Leia entered the room from the cockpit, still walking with the assistance of a cane due to her injuries. She slowly walked over to where he and Rey were situated.  
         “Poe, Rey,” Leia greeted them. “We think we’ve found a location where we can lay low until we gather our bearings. One of my Vurk contacts on the planet Sembla promised us a secure location where we could land.”  
         “Sembla?” Poe pondered. “Isn’t Sembla mostly ocean. The First Order finds us there, we won’t have anywhere to run or hide.”  
         “My contact promised we would be away from prying eyes,” Leia noted. “I trust him, and we don’t have much in the way of options at the moment. Most of our allies have gone silent on us.” She looked especially perturbed by the last statement.  
          Poe nodded, giving up any argument before it could properly form. “Whatever you think is best General. I’m with you.”  
Leia patted him affectionately on the cheek before walking to talk to another officer. “You learn fast, Commander.” Rey looked at their interaction with raised brows.  
         “Long story, but last time she slapped me. No, no, actually she shot me after that, so this was an improvement.” Poe stood and looked back at her. “I’m going to go keep Chewie company. You think he’ll let me fly this thing? I lost my ride and I think the controls are calling to me.”  
         “I think he’ll rip your arms off before he lets you,” Rey grinned.  
         “Co-pilot it is then,” Poe sighed, giving her a wink before heading off. He actually felt much better having had a chance to compare screw ups with someone else. The truth was he just wasn’t used to it…screwing up. He walked into the cockpit and found the fearsome wookie alone, steering the Falcon. Chewbacca barely spared a glance as Poe sat in the seat beside him. “Think I could fly this for awhile?” he asked, completely ignoring Rey’s warning of potential limb detachment. Chewbacca looked sideways at him and offered him a curt growl. Poe understood more droid than he did wookie, but the rejection came through loud and clear anyway. “Got ya. If your arms get tired, though, I’m right here buddy.” Chewie didn’t even respond that time.  
         They sat in silence for another hour as they sped through hyperspace. Eventually, the Falcon’s navigation indicated they were approaching their destination, and Chewbacca brought them out of lightspeed, directly in front of a planet that was dominated by vibrant blue seas, with spots of brown and green earth speckled throughout. As they approached the planet, the ship’s communication system indicated that they were being hailed. Not knowing whether he should make contact, Poe looked back, but soon realized that the General was practically standing over him. How long she had been there, Poe had no idea.  
         “Incoming message, General,” Poe noted, though it was clear Leia could see that.  
         “Patch it through, Commander,” Leia ordered.  
         A buzzing of static came through initially as Poe opened the correct channel, but then a heavily accented male voice carried through the cockpit. “This is Nyeb Vannis, for General Organa. We are tracking you now on our scanners.”  
Leia leaned forward even further over Poe, completely disregarding his personal space. “This is General Organa, Nyeb. We are receiving you.”  
        “With your authorization, General, I will transmit our location to your navigation.”  
        “You are authorized,” Leia confirmed.  
        “Message being sent now,” Nyeb indicated. “Follow the transmitted route, General. When you reach the destination, hold and wait for our signal.”  
        “Transmission received,” Leia stated stepping back. “We will see you shortly, Nyeb. Take us down Chewie.”  
        Poe had just finished downloading the transmitted route, and Chewie was quick to correct their course, which they were off of, considerably. The features of the planet became clearer on their approach, but as Poe had recalled, their was little in the way of civilization. The majority of the land masses on Sembla consisted of small volcanic islands, which were fine for the native Vurks, who lived on both land and sea. Poe feared it was not the best place to rebuild a rebellion. His concern only grew as the navigation indicated that they had reached their destination. To put it plainly, they were now hovering over a large expanse of ocean, with only a small island out in the distance. Something clearly had to be wrong.  
        “Uh, General…” Poe began, ready to finally put voice to his reservations. Leia, however, tapped him on the shoulder and refocused his attention forward. He quickly understood why. In the middle of the swath of endless water, a large, metallic grey tube had begun to emerge from the water’s surface. It ascended slowly, until it was situated at a gentle sloping angle. At first glance, the end of the tube seemed to be sealed, but then the covering suddenly retracted away, as if reading Poe’s skeptical mind.  
        “I think that may be our signal,” Poe said, impressed. Chewbacca lined up the Falcon and proceeded to pilot the ship into the tube. The tube itself was about twice the size of the Falcon in both width and height, so Chewie was able to follow the passage easily. The walls were bare, except for a string of failing lights that gradually grew brighter as the door behind them closed once again. The passage continued on for only a short ways, before it emptied into a large hanger, which only held what Poe thought were several submersibles. Chewbacca brought the Falcon down smoothly, right in the center of the hanger.  
        “What is this place?” Poe asked, turning back to Leia.  
        “The Republic used to have mining contracts with the Vurks,” Leia began, “Most of the mining took place beneath the water, so the mining companies set up these underground facilities to expedite the process. There haven’t been any mining crews here for decades though, so this place has been sitting abandoned. It’s pretty safe to assume that the First Order likely has little to no knowledge of this.”  
        “That’s pretty brilliant, General,” Poe nodded. “Even if they did track us here, I doubt their surface scanners would be able to pick us up. Still, how do we know the Vurks won’t sell us out the first time a First Order ship gets within a system of this place?”  
        “Unlikely,” Leia stated, confidently. “The Emperor had a Vurk senator executed after the fall of the Republic. Their sympathies don’t exactly fall toward facist imperialism.” Leia turned and started to head out of the cockpit. “I’m going to go meet our host. Would you and Chewbacca check to see what sort of supplies and equipment we have left to work with. Most of what we had we left on Crait, but who knows what Han hid away on this thing over the years. Then we’ll need to set up a new command center.”  
        Poe nodded. “Consider it done, boss.”

         If he had been tired before, than now he was ready to drop. It had been hours since they had arrived on Sembla, and Poe had been through every nook and cranny of the mining facility to take stock of the place. It was impossible to tell from above, but the place was actually cavernous. There were storage facilities, dining halls, living quarters and all manner of other places that needed to be inspected. Leia’s contact, Nyeb, had given him a brief walkthrough, but then Poe had been left to his own devices, although he had managed to wrangle Finn into helping out as well. Which was why the two of them were currently moving a heavy table into the new command center.  
         “Tell me,” Finn huffed, struggling under the table’s immense weight. “Why didn’t we grab Rey? If she can move rocks with her mind, then this thing shouldn’t be a problem.”  
         The thought had crossed Poe’s mind, but he hadn’t had the heart to ask after their talk. “I think she’s still a little strung out. There’s probably so many things going on in her head right now that we can’t even understand.”  
         Finn shrugged. “I get that. Apparently, I saw Luke Skywalker on Crait, but then he wasn’t really on Crait, but then he also died because he pretended to be on Crait. I tell you Poe, this Force stuff is on a whole other level.”  
         “That’s why two normal guys like us don’t get to mess around with it,” Poe sighed as they finally set down the table. “Who knows what the hell we’d blow up.”  
         “Me, maybe,” Finn conceded. “I don’t know about you though. Watching you fly is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. You sure you don’t have a little Jedi in you.”  
         “I think I would have realized by now if I had,” Poe chuckled, barely giving it a second thought. “Anyway, what’s with you and Rose. I noticed you were hovering pretty close on the Falcon.”  
         “She saved me,” Finn said, instantly. “I was all ready to run myself into that cannon, and then she just knocked me out of the way…then she kissed me?”  
         “Ah,” Poe grinned. “First kiss? I’m only guessing because I’m not sure what the romantic opportunities were like for stormtroopers on Starkiller Base.”  
         "Yes,” Finn shared, “and non-existant.”  
         “Well, good for you pal,” Poe congratulated, slapping Finn on the back.  
         “I’m not even sure if I have those feelings for her, I think I’m just slightly shocked by it.”  
         “Don’t worry about it,” Poe advised. “Chances are she won’t even remember it.”  
         “Hey, I don’t think I was that bad!”  
         “Finn, I meant because she was just in a major collision and may have a head injury, not because of your lack of prowess,” Poe clarified, shaking his head.  
         “Oh, good,” Finn grinned, but then quickly frowned. “Not to the head injury, but to the-“  
         “I got ya, Finn. I think I’m going to call it a night. Not that I have any idea whether it’s day or night right now from down here, but I’m wiped out.”  
         Poe left his friend in the command center and walked past the living quarters. He took a look inside and saw that most of the bunks were full, although he couldn’t really tell. He didn’t feel like disturbing anyone though, so he decided he would just crash in the Falcon for the night. He had hoped to see BB-8 again, but one of the techs had taken the droid to double check all of the life support and security systems on the facility. They were a little short on droids, so BB-8 was working overtime.  
The facility’s hanger was empty when Poe entered, so no one disturbed him when he made his way onto the Falcon. There were two sets of bunks on the Falcon, and Poe was unsurprised to find Chewie snoring and lounging peacefully in the first set. Deciding against trying to squeeze into the bunk below or above the slumbering wookie, he continued on to the second set of bunks which were completely empty. Pulling off his jacket and blaster, he set them on the floor beneath the lowest bunk. He was just about to crawl in when something caused him to pause. He wasn’t sure what it was, but he stepped out of the bunks and moved to the center of the ship. That was where he found her.  
          He hadn’t seen Rey since they landed, but apparently she hadn’t left the Falcon. Poe found her seated on the floor, knees crossed. Her eyes were closed and she seemed to be in a deep meditation. He just stood and watched her for several minutes, unable to move or look away. Poe would swear that he could almost feel an invisible presence surrounding swirling through the ship, as if it was caressing him. As time ticked by, he shook himself when he realized he was acting like a complete creep, just standing there and staring at her. Finally, he managed to drag himself away and into his claimed bunk. He sighed contentedly as he stretched his limbs. He closed his eyes, and realized he could still feel that invisible presence lingering. However, instead of distracting him, the presence lulled him into a peaceful slumber.


	2. Chapter 2

     “Rey…”  
     “Rey…”  
     The voice was calling to her, just out of reach. As soon they had arrived on Sembla, she had stowed herself away on the Falcon, away from inquiring eyes. She felt bad for abandoning everyone else as they made themselves usesful, but her mind was jumbled and she needed quiet to try and gather her bearings. The first time she had been introduced to the Resistance, she had just been a newcomer. Only Leia had really known what she was…what she could do. But now, everyone…well everyone that was left in their dwindling Resistance…had seen what she was, had seen her powers. Eyes followed her, curious and hopeful. It was a burden that she was not prepared for.  
     She had felt better after talking to Poe. He had been reverent of her abilities, but still talked to her as if she were just another soldier. He had his own demons to deal with, and it was nice to commiserate over perceived failings. Yet, she still felt the need to withdraw. When she used the Force to move the boulders on Crait, it had felt different. The connection had been clearer than ever before. When she had first felt the connection on Starkiller Base, it had been something new and terrifying. Then on Ach To, the connection had been tainted by Snoke, and the forced and manipulated connection with Ben Solo. But now it was different. There was a peace to it, an understanding.  
     She had been sitting in meditation for hours, just exploring her connection to the Force. She felt as this amazing presence linked everything around her together. But then, all of a sudden, there was a murmer. The murmer then materialized into a voice. It was saying her name, repeating it over and over. She focused on it, following it as it grew louder and clearer. It took only moments, but then she recognized it. Luke. It was definitely Luke’s voice calling her name. She waited and waited, but he didn’t say anything else, just her name. Her frustration grew at the unsatisfying chase, but then something happened.   
It felt like invisible hands grabbed her beneath her arms and pulled her with unrelenting force out of the Falcon. All of a sudden she was floating away from Sembla and into black space, flying quickly across the galaxy. Solar systems blurred by her, but then she stopped. She was floating in space, staring at a planet she did not recognize. It was a mesmerizing swirls of blues and whites, clearly covered in snow and ice. It was beautiful and there was an instant connection to it that she could not explain. She reached out, trying to will herself closer to its surface, but then the same force that had carried her there, grabbed her around the waist and pulled her away. She was dragged backwards the same way she had traveled, until she was falling through the seas of Sembla and back into the Falcon. However, instead of arriving back where she had started, knelt down on the floor in mediation, she found herself standing in front of the bunks, where a wide-eyed Poe Dameron was staring at her in confusion.  
     “Poe?” She started, drawing him out of his funk.  
     “You were not there, and then you were there,” he muttered, pointing to where she now stood. “I was asleep, but something was calling me. I think it was someone saying my name over and over. I don’t know what it was. It woke me up, just before you appeared.”  
     “I had a vision, too,” Rey explained.  
     Poe looked at her in curiosity, while also trying to rub the sleep from his eyes. “What sort of vision?”  
     “I heard Luke’s voice calling to me, and then I was shown a vision of a planet I’ve never seen before.”  
     “What do you think that means? Did he say anything else?”  
     “No, just my name,” Rey frowned. “I think he must want me to go there. But I don’t know where there is. And then I was just physically dropped here in front of you.”  
     “Hmmm, maybe that was for a reason,” Poe responded, standing from his bunk. He reached up with both arms to stretch out his shoulders. Rey found herself staring at his exposed torso as his shirt lifted slightly, but quickly looked away when she realized what she was doing. What was it with men that compelled them to expose their bare chests to her? Luckily, it appeared that Poe hadn’t noticed, because when she turned back he had reached down to pick up his jacket and holster. He squeezed past her and stated, “follow me.”  
     Poe led them out of the Falcon and into the main hanger. Rey looked around, taking everything in for first time. As she perused the new surroundings, she found herself falling behind Poe, who was taking quick strides, and was forced to scurry after him.  
     “It’s not much right now, but we’ll get it up and running in no time,” Poe remarked as he noticed her looking around. “The navigation computers down here are a little dated, but I’m hoping they’ll give us what we need. If not, then we can try and plug into BB-8 or R-2.” They continued on into a room that was filled with different monitors and equipment. Several other Resistance soldiers had already woken and were working at several of the computers. A couple greeted Poe, but he just waved and took a seat at an emptly workstation. “So, what do your remember about your mystery planet?”  
     “It was cold, all ice,” Ray recalled.  
     “Was it anywhere in the Core?”  
     “I don’t think so. I think I may have traveled through the Core to wherever I ended up.”  
     “Well, that should narrow it down,” Poe mused as he typed away on the keyboard. “If you traveled from Sembla through the Core worlds, then you were heading towards the Unknown Regions.”  
     “Is there anything out there that would be an ice planet significant to Luke?”  
     “Ilum,” Poe responded immediately. He typed in the planet’s name and on the screen Rey was confronted witht the image from her vision.  
     “That’s it,” she confirmed. “What’s significant about it?”  
     “It was important to the Jedi,” Poe explained. “There was a temple there at one time, and the Jedi used to retreive crystals there for their lightsabers. Although, I thought the place had been ransacked following the Clone Wars. I can’t imagine there is much left there.”  
     “Well, evidently Luke wants me to go there,” Rey stated, still staring at the monitor. The image of Luke’s broken lightsaber in the Falcon immediately popped into her mind.  
     “Luke wants you to go where?”  
     Rey and Poe turned to see Leia standing in the doorway, accompanied by a few of the remaining Resistance officers. She looked better than she had the previous day, and walked over to them steadily. Rey took time to carefully explain the entirety of her vision to the General, and the ensuing research that she and Poe had undertaken.  
     “If what you say is accurate, then I think you need to go to Ilum. For Luke to contact you so quickly, must mean that it is of great importance,” Leia surmised. She turned her sights onto Poe. “And, for whatever reason, it seems you need to go with her. I’d say it can’t be coincidence that you were hearing a voice calling you the same time as Ray.”  
     “Why would I have to go to Ilum?” Poe questioned. “What could possibly be there for me?”  
     “I won’t deign to understand my Brother, but the Force was calling to you. I think it would be wise to answer,” Leia advised, giving a look that indicated there was not actually a choice to be made.  
     “General, I’m needed here,” Poe argued, stubbornly. “We’re barely operational at the moment. Not to mention we only have a single ship. It would be suicide to take the Falcon into the Unkwown Regions. We would pop up on every single First Order scanner within seconds.”  
Leia nodded. “I agree. Our lack of a fleet is an immediate problem. We can’t send out emissaries for aide until we have the means of moving around the galaxy. This means exploring every possibility we have to.”  
     “What are our options?” Rey asked.  
     “In my years serving in the Alliance and the Resistance, we’ve had to widely allocate out our forces across the galaxy. We never knew when we would be found and would have to abandon one of our bases on a moment’s notice. We’ve left behind countless resources over the years.”  
     “Ships included, I’m guessing?” Poe questioned.  
     “Likely,” Leia confirmed. “We can only guess as to whether they were destroyed or stolen. There’s also no telling how old some of the technology is.” “Something is better than nothing,” Poe asserted. “I’m assuming you have a plan.”  
     “You assume correctly, Commander Dameron,” Leia affirmed. “There was a rebel base and A-Wing factory on Cardooine years ago.” She moved past Poe and brought up an image of the planet on the navigation computer. “It was attacked by the Empire, but chances are there are still ships and supplies left in the hangar. I want you to lead a team there to explore the remains of the base. If you find adequate transports, you and Ray can continue on to Ilum, while the rest return here.”  
     “Will there be any locals to worry about?” Poe asked, scrolling through the planetary data on the screen. Rey stood behind him, looking at the green, forest-covered world.  
     “There aren’t any large citites, only smaller settlements. It’s mostly commercial timber operations. They’ll likely have small security forces, but stay out of their way and there shouldn’t be any problems. Offer them credits if you must.”  
     “Got it, bribery is approved,” Poe responded. “I think we should take at least twenty, including whatever pilots we have left. We should also, go incognito. No uniforms or insignia. We can make something up for why we’re there if we have to. Do we have an schematics on the base?”  
     “Possibly,” Leia pondered. “R-2 may have them stored in his memory. I’ll have him plug in to the Falcon and upload them.”  
     “I still don’t feel right leaving you stranded here,” Poe fretted.  
     “It must be done, Commander,” Leia countered, laying a hand on his shoulder. “The truth is, right now we pose little in the way of a threat to the First Order. With Snoke dead, Ren is going to have to estalbish his authority as their new leader, something that he will need to do quickly, or risk losing control of systems. We aren’t going to be his priority.”

    Several hours later, Rey found herself in the crew quarters on the Falcon, packing a bundle of thick clothing into her satchel. She had managed to locate some cold gear in the mining facility that would be useful for the trip to Ilum. The idea of all that ice already gave her the chills. She tucked the broken halves of the lightsaber into the bag, and then sealed the bag. The only thing she needed for the trip to Cardooine was her staff.  
     “Rey.”  
     She turned around and saw Poe standing in the doorway. He had exhanged his normal outfit for more nondescript clothing for their upcoming endeavor. She had also exhanged her tunic for a dingy shirt and flight jacket. Poe was grasping something in his hands, which he held out to her. “I figured you could use this. We have absolutely no idea what we’re about to walk into. Better safe than sorry.”  
     She took the holster and sidearm from Poe. It wasn’t anything fancy, just a standard blaster pistol. She took the holster and attached it around her right thigh, high enough that it was a comfortable reach down, if necessary. “Thanks, Poe,” she said as she looked back up.  
     “No problem,” he answered. He looked like he was about to leave again, but hesitated.  
     “Everything alright?” Rey questioned.  
     He ran a hand through his hair before turning back to her. “Listen, I didn’t mean to be so combative earlier about going with you to Ilum. It wasn’t anything personal. It’s just the Republic and this Resistance has been my life. Leaving it when it’s so vulnerable isn’t easy for me.”  
     “It’s fine, Poe,” Rey assured him. “I don’t think Luke would have us going to Ilum if it meant sacficing the Resistance. He came back when we needed him because he believed in it, believed in us.”  
     “You’re right, of course,” Poe grinned. “Let’s go get this mission done, then we’ll go freeze our butts of on Ilum.”  
     “Sounds like a plan, Commander.”  
     “Anyway, you should probably follow me. I’m about to brief the crew.”  
Rey nodded and followed Poe’s retreating form into the center of the Falcon, where the rest of the their crew was gathered. All together, there were twenty four of them. Finn stood next to Chewbacca and BB-8, who was situated at their feet. In the middle of room, Poe stood with R-2 next to him. Poe held up his hand and the room immediately went silent.  
     “Good morning, everyone,” Poe began, his voice carrying through the Falcon. “You’ve all been given a short synopsis of our mission, but I wanted to go over some specifics. R-2, if you would?” R-2 gave an affirmative beep, before leaning back and projecting an image of Cardooine into the center of the room. The image zoomed in to a small facility on the planet’s surface. “This is a schematic of the rebel base as it existed on Cardooine during the rebellion against the Empire. It’s been abandoned for decades, so we don’t know it’s condition or whether its been occupied by others during that time. I won’t lie to you, we’re going in blind.”   
Poe walked closer to the projection and pointed below the base. “There’s a small clearing here, a short trek south of the base. This is where we are going to land. From there, we are going to split into two teams. Finn and Chewbacca will lead the first team northwest to the rear of the base where the hangar is located, and Ray and I will lead the second team northeast to the front of the base. If there is anyone there, we’ll come at them from both sides. Any questions?” When no one spoke up, Poe continued. “Remember, if we run into locals, no mention of the First Order or the Resistance. We’re traders who have been forced to land due to mechanical difficulities and are looking for parts to repair our ship. That’s our story. Now check your weapons and get ready to move out.”  
Rey followed Poe, Finn and Chewbacca into the cockpit. She took a seat behind the wookie as he began to prepare the ship for take off. Meanwhile, Poe had activated the ship’s communications. “General, this is Poe. The crew has been briefed and we are ready to go.”  
     “Copy that, Poe,” Leia’s voice sounded. “We are raising the tunnel now for your exit. Good luck, Commander. May the Force be with you.”  
     “Thank you, General. Poe out.” Poe turned to Chewbacca. “Okay, Chewie. Let’s do this.” Chewie growled in acknowledgement. The Falcon’s engines roared and it began to raise from the ground. He maneuavered the ship in a circle, until the front of the ship was facing the tunnel. Rey sat back in her seat, gripping it as the Falcon accelerated quickly through the passage and out into the atmosphere of Sembla.

  
     Kylo Ren stared down broodingly into the charred remains of what had been the First Jedi Temple. Someone had already done his job for him. As soon as he had left the nightmare that had been Crait, he had led a small force to the planet, Ahch-To. He had only ever seen glimpses of the oceans and island through Rey’s mind, never knowing its exact location. That was until he exploded Skywalker’s old lightsaber through his master’s torso. As his Master died, Ren had reached into the man’s mind and extracted what he had learned from Rey.   
Now he stood on an emptly island. He looked around at the bare rock, at the green, slaughtered forms of the guardian creatures who had watched over this place for centuries. He had used his lightsaber to eviseracte them, the only pleasure he had taken from the visit. Luke’s presence taunted him with ever step. The legend was dead, but he could feel the man’s imprint everywhere through the Force. It was mocking him, to the point where he could barely contain his rage. Being on the island was physically painful.  
      He turned and walked back to his ship. Hux, the pathetic sycophant, was standing at the bottom of the gangplank, surrounding by a unit of stormtroopers.         “Destroy it,” Ren whispered, as he walked by them.  
     “Excuse me, Supreme Leader?” Hux questioned, confused.  
     Ren turned around, his eyes burning red. “I said destroy it, General. I want this island blasted away until there is not single speck of rock remaining. I want every part of this island that Skywalker ever walked on or touched gone from existence. Do I make myself clear!”  
     Hux nodded, quickly. “Yes, my lord. It shall be done.” 


End file.
